Miscellaneous | Christian Ministry Training Blog

What Do You Think About Your Pastor?

Posted on October 2, 2009 by Ministry Tools Resource Center

October is National Clergy Appreciation Month in the U.S. with the second Sunday of the month being Clergy Appreciation Day (perhaps also known as Pastor Appreciation Day or Ministry Appreciation Day).

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If we were to take a poll asking people what they think about their pastors, we’d probably get a mixed review . . .

from quite happy to very disgruntled with the pastor.

The reasons behind those responses would vary, even if people marked the same level of satisfaction. Some would be reporting objectively while others subjectively. Hence, some could be based on reality and some on false perceptions. Personal preferences and biases can enter in.

How God Encourages Us to Respond in Terms of Pastor Appreciation

We need to acknowledge how we think and feel. But, even more importantly, we need to determine how God wants us to respond no matter where we fall on the spectrum of “quite happy to very disgruntled” with the pastor.

A verse often used for Pastor Appreciation Day is 1 Thessalonians 5:12 —

Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work.

But, where does that leave those of you on the more disgruntled side … especially those who are basing your perception on reality because the pastor truly isn’t doing a good job or has made a series of poor choices? Let’s keep going in 1 Thessalonians 5 to verses 13 – 18.

Live in peace with each other.

… warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.

Be joyful always.

Pray continually.

Give thanks in all circumstances.

… for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Does Communion Equal Communion?

Posted on September 8, 2009 by Ministry Tools Resource Center — 2 Comments ↓

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On the first Sunday of October some will celebrate World Communion Day. Yet, the ordinance of communion depicts one of the many differences among Christendom.

Not all churches celebrate communion the same way. Some use a single cup and some provide a small plastic cup for everyone. Some use a loaf of bread and others small wafers. Some pass the elements while some have people come forward. And that is just methodology. Theological differences exist among churches in the ordinance of communion as well as how often communion should be served.

What Makes Communion Equal Communion … Fellowship, True Unity

At minimum, communion provides a remembrance of what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross. Let’s get to the bottom line of communion, the work of Jesus on the cross, and find our commonality in Him. When we do, communion equals communion, not just with God but also with one another.

With all the liberal and immoral influences in the world around us, as Christians we need to lay aside our differences and come together with one voice in Christ to be that salt and light so desperately needed. We can do that when we remember that it is who we are “in Him,” because of what He did on the cross, that really matters. Then, differences don’t have to divide. We fellowship with one another, in true unity, because of Him, not because we believe exactly the same on all matters.

Ephesians 4:16 – One Verse Says It All

Posted on June 29, 2009 by Ministry Tools Resource Center — 4 Comments ↓

If I had to give a Scripture verse defining why I do what I do as director of Ministry Tools Resource Center, I would choose Ephesians 4:16. That one verse says it all about God’s intent and design for His Church. It has long been the passion of my heart to see the Body of Christ line up with God’s purpose and objective for the Church and to get there following His design.

From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

How Ephesians 4:16, Just One Verse Says It All About God’s Intent for Church Life

This verse sums up God’s intent for the Church and how we need to function in accordance with His design:

1) The Church’s Identity: the Body of Christ (“from him the whole body”)

The church is a living organism made up of many different parts under the leadership of the Head, Jesus Christ. Out of this diversity comes unity. We are one in Him.

—So, I had to develop a section just on Body Life.

2) The Church’s Objective: “grows and builds itself up”

The Church should be growing numerically through new converts and qualitatively with one another –reaching out but also building one another up …. both, not either/or.

—So, I knew ministry training had to include outreach ministry but also shepherding, prayer, worship, teaching, and more.

3) The Church’s Purpose: “in love”

Love, the greatest commandment according to Jesus, unites us (Col.2:2) and so over all the different virtues we can and should exhibit in our lives we must “put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity” (Col. 3:14). We “live a life of love, just as Christ loved us” (Eph. 5:1-2). We “do everything in love” (1 Cor. 16:14). We “serve one another in love” (Gal. 5:13) and “speak the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15). Above all, we are to “love each other deeply” (1 Peter. 4:8) and “increase and overflow” in that love (1 Thess. 3:12).

—So, I wanted a section devoted solely to the Church’s Purpose to love God and love people out of which the church ministries would flow.

4) The Church’s Design: “as each part does its work”

The Church was made to best function as an interdependent unit. All parts are needed (1 Cor. 12:21-26). Every believer has something to contribute (1 Cor. 12:7).

—So, with everybody doing their part as the means through which this all happens, I had to make teaching on Spiritual Gifts a core value around which the site would be built.

Here are some other articles on the MinTools.com site on Ephesians 4:16. Isn’t it amazing how much can come out of just one verse?

I told you — this one verse says it all. Now, may the Church be the Church!